🧵 In Today’s Edition

1. Jeanette Davidson-Mayer wants to bring her conservative sensibilities to the Greensboro City Council’s District 5.
2. An Update on N.C. Rep. Cecil Brockman
3. What We’re Reading

From Patriotism to Politics

Jeannette Davidson-Mayer is a political newcomer seeking the Greensboro City Council’s District 5 seat. She moved to the city from New Plymouth, Idaho, where she lived for nearly two decades and served two terms on the city council.

Mayer came to Greensboro during the pandemic to find better care for her ex-husband, DeWayne, who suffered from five traumatic brain injuries while serving in the Army National Guard in Iraq from 2004-05. 

In Idaho, Davidson-Mayer said, she learned of the importance of municipal elections and ran for city council in 2007. In 2012, she was re-elected and served a second term. According to her website, she served as council president from 2012-14. 

“I enjoyed hearing the concerns of everyone,” she said. “And seeing if there was any way possible as a city to find a happy medium, to find a way to work with them for a solution.”

When she moved to Greensboro, she began thinking about ways to get involved politically here, too. While the Greensboro City Council is nonpartisan, Davidson-Mayer is a registered Republican.

“Greensboro is in a pivotal election year,” she said. “It’s critical that we make some changes for the betterment of our city.”

Read the full story here.

— Sayaka Matsuoka

Thanks for reading The Thread, a 3x week newsletter written by Greensboro editor Joe Killian and reporters Sayaka Matsuoka and Gale Melcher. Reach us with tips or ideas at greensboro@theassemblync.com.

N.C. House Speaker Destin Hall announced last week that he would form a bipartisan committee to investigate Democratic Rep. Cecil Brockman of Guilford County, which could result in the first expulsion of a state lawmaker since 2008. 

Earlier this month, Brockman was arrested and charged with indecent liberties with a child and statutory rape. The new committee will make a recommendation to the full chamber, which could then take up a resolution to remove Brockman from office. 

Brockman hasn’t responded to requests for comment since his arrest and remains in jail. Democratic and Republican leaders alike have called on him to resign. If he doesn’t, it would be at least several weeks before Brockman could be removed from office.

While GOP leaders have said they don’t anticipate more votes this year, their adjournment resolution set aside November 17-20 and December 15-18 as times they could return to Raleigh if needed. They could use either of those sessions to remove Brockman. 

According to the NC Legislative Library, as many as 14 lawmakers have been expelled in state history. In 2008, Rep. Thomas Wright, a Democrat, was removed and later sentenced to prison on corruption and embezzlement charges. Before Wright, no member had been expelled since 1880.

— Bryan Anderson

What We’re Reading

Two Become One: Greensboro chipmaker Qorvo has agreed to be sold to Skyworks Solutions of Irvine, Calif., in a deal involving two major suppliers to Apple. The companies have not said where the combined company will be based, the News & Record reports.

Knowing is Half the Battle: Gene Connect, a research program through Cone Health, has a test that can detect an increased chance of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, colon cancer, and heart disease. Fox8 has more.

Suit Over Shutdown: North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson is joining other Democratic officials across the country in suing the federal government. The move is an attempt to force the use of reserve funds to keep food benefits going as the federal shutdown continues. WFDD has the story.

Joe Killian is The Assembly's Greensboro editor. He joined us from NC Newsline, where he was senior investigative reporter. He spent a decade at The News & Record covering cops and courts, higher education, and government.

Bryan Anderson is a politics reporter for The Assembly, covering state government and anchoring our twice-weekly politics newsletter, The Caucus. He previously covered elections, voting access, and state government for WRAL-TV, The Associated Press, and The News & Observer.

Sayaka Matsuoka is a Greensboro-based reporter for The Assembly. She was formerly the managing editor for Triad City Beat, an alt-weekly based in Greensboro. She has reported for INDY Week, The Bitter Southerner, and Nerdist, and is the editorial/diversity chair for AAN Publishers.